Challenge Day ideas for OSHC
60 DIY activities for Challenge Day at before and after school care or vacation care. Pick and mix, or build a balanced day in one click.
Absurd Task Challenges
Teams tackle quirky, open-ended tasks such as building the tallest tower from one sheet of paper, solving problems creatively and laughing along the way.
World Space Week · Space Explorers · Science and Space +2Astronaut Glove Challenge
Children try everyday tasks such as threading beads or building with bricks while wearing thick gloves, discovering how hard fine work is for astronauts on spacewalks.
One-Minute Challenge Day · Game Show Day · Challenge Day +1Biscuit Face Challenge
Children try to move a biscuit from their forehead to their mouth within one minute without using their hands.
Teamwork Day · Friendship Day · Challenge DayBlindfold Trust Walk
Partners take turns guiding each other around a simple outdoor course using only spoken directions, building trust and clear communication.
Gladiator Day · Athletics Carnival · Teamwork Day +2Champion Relay
Teams race through a relay of running, hopping and carrying tasks to earn the title of champions.
Great Race Day · Challenge Day · Obstacle Course Day +2Checkpoint Roadblock Tasks
Teams stop at checkpoints to complete a mix of physical and brain-teaser tasks before moving on, combining fitness and thinking.
Japan Day · Lunar New Year · One-Minute Challenge Day +2Chopstick Challenge
Children practise using chopsticks to move pompoms between bowls, testing speed and precision.
Circus Day · Challenge Day · Learn to Day +1Circus Skills Practice
Children try plate spinning, diabolo, hula hoops and balancing feathers in a skills circuit.
Circus Day · Obstacle Course Day · Ninja Obstacle Day +1Circus Tightrope Walk
Children balance along a rope on the ground, holding an umbrella like a circus tightrope walker.
Game Show Day · Games Carnival Day · One-Minute Challenge Day +1Classic Quiz Show Day
Children take part in kid versions of quiz and challenge game shows, with buzzers and hosts.
One-Minute Challenge Day · Game Show Day · Silly Tasks Day +1Cotton Ball Nose Challenge
Children dab a little petroleum jelly on their nose and try to move cotton balls from one bowl to another in one minute.
Challenge Day · Games Day · Teamwork Day +2Create Your Own Game
Small groups invent a brand-new game, write the rules and teach it to the rest of the group to play.
One-Minute Challenge Day · Game Show Day · Challenge Day +1Cup Stacking Pyramid
Children race to build and unstack a pyramid of plastic cups within 60 seconds.
After School Quick STEM · Science Week · Science Day +3Cup Tower Book Challenge
Children engineer a tower from cups and card strong enough to hold a book, testing ideas about balance, load and stable bases.
Gross and Messy Day · Messy Play Day · Bug Day +1Custard Worm Hunt
A no-hands challenge where children search custard-filled trays for hidden lolly worms using only their mouths.
Challenge Day · Art Attack Day · Budding Artists +2Detailed Painting Challenge
Children slow down and focus on a detailed painting using fine brushes, building patience and careful technique.
Pi Day · Science Week · Challenge Day +1Discovering Pi
Children measure round objects with string and rulers to discover the special number pi. Maths that feels like a detective challenge.
Science Day · Inventors Day · Science Week +3Egg Drop Challenge
Older children design a protective package so a raw egg survives a drop from height, testing their engineering ideas.
Easter · Pi Day · Challenge DayEgg Guessing Jar
Children estimate how many small eggs are in a jar, then count them together to see whose guess was closest.
Healthy Heart Day · Athletics Carnival · Obstacle Course Day +2Exercise Stations
Children rotate through skipping, star jumps, running and other stations to get their hearts pumping.
Santa's Workshop · Christmas · Christmas in July +2Gift Wrapping Relay
Teams race to wrap boxes neatly against the clock, practising a handy life skill in a festive, fast-paced game.
Teamwork Day · Challenge Day · Games DayHuman Knot
Children hold hands across a circle to create a tangle, then work together to untangle themselves without letting go.
Basketball Day · Challenge Day · Games Day +1Knockout Shooting Game
Players line up and race to sink a shot before the person behind them, in a classic elimination basketball game.
Spy School · Obstacle Course Day · Ninja Obstacle Day +2Laser Maze Spy Training
Children crawl under and step over wool laser lines and sneak past sleeping guards in a spy obstacle course.
Greek Myths Day · Athletics Carnival · Gladiator Day +2Mini Ancient Games
Children compete in ancient-style events such as sprints, long jump and a pool noodle javelin throw.
Puzzle Day · Before School Calm Start · Pi Day +1Mini Sudoku
Children solve simple 4x4 sudoku puzzles using numbers, colours or pictures. A quiet logic challenge.
World Water Day · Science Week · Science Day +3Muddy Water Filter Challenge
Teams build layered filters from cut plastic bottles, gravel, sand and cloth, then race to make muddy water look as clear as possible and learn why treatment plants do more.
Junior Chef Challenge · Cooking Day · Challenge Day +2Mystery Box Lunch Challenge
Teams open a mystery box of safe, simple ingredients and work together to create a lunch for a judging panel.
French Day · Science Week · At the Building Site +3Newspaper Iron Tower Challenge
Teams roll newspaper into strong tubes and build the tallest freestanding tower they can, using the triangles that hold up the famous iron tower in Paris.
Ninja Obstacle Day · Obstacle Course Day · Challenge Day +2Ninja Balance Challenges
Children try a series of ninja-style balance poses and moves, from one-leg stands to balance board holds. Builds core strength, focus and a bit of friendly challenge.
Ninja Obstacle Day · Obstacle Course Day · Extreme Challenge Day +2Ninja Obstacle Course
Children tackle a soft-play obstacle course of balancing, jumping, crawling and climbing like ninjas. Burns energy and builds confidence on a big active day.
Challenge Day · Obstacle Course Day · Ninja Obstacle Day +3Obstacle Course Challenge
Children tackle an obstacle course of cones, hoops and mats, challenging themselves to improve their own times.
One-Minute Challenge Day · Game Show Day · Challenge Day +1One-Minute Household Challenges
Children rotate through quick one-minute challenges using everyday items, like stacking cups or moving lollies with a straw.
After School Quick STEM · Paper Crafts Day · Challenge Day +2One-Sheet Paper Chain
Teams try to make the longest possible paper chain from a single sheet, planning how to cut and join strips for maximum length.
Science Week · At the Building Site · Teamwork Day +2Peg and Pop Stick Tower
Children build the tallest tower they can using wooden pegs and pop sticks, testing balance and structure.
Gladiator Day · Medieval Times · Knights and Fairies +2Pool Noodle Duel
Children balance on a low beam and try to gently tap each other off-balance with soft pool noodles.
Brick Building Day · Challenge Day · Block World Day +1Random Brick Challenge
Children build something using only 20 randomly drawn bricks.
Board Games Day · Games Day · Challenge Day +1Round-Robin Games Tournament
Children compete in round-robin tournaments of classic games, practising good sportsmanship and strategy.
Great Race Day · Teamwork Day · Treasure Hunters Day +2Service-Wide Challenge Race
Teams race through challenge stations around the whole service, collecting clues that lead them to a final finish line.
One-Minute Challenge Day · Game Show Day · Challenge Day +1Shake the Box Challenge
Children wear a tissue box filled with ping pong balls on their waist and wiggle to shake all the balls out in one minute.
Pirate Day · Loose Parts Day · Cardboard Box Day +2Shipwreck Repair Challenge
Teams patch a cardboard ship using crates, fabric and tubes to make it seaworthy before a pretend storm. Teamwork and creative building.
Basketball Day · Target Games Day · Challenge Day +1Shooting Stars Challenge
Children try shooting from marked spots around the hoop to collect stars, building accuracy and confidence at their own pace.
Friendship Day · Teamwork Day · Block World Day +1Silent Friendship Tower
Teams work together to build the tallest tower they can without talking, using only gestures.
Challenge Day · Teamwork Day · Puzzle Day +1Silent Team Jigsaw
Teams complete a jigsaw without speaking, using only gestures to communicate and cooperate.
Silly Tasks Day · Game Show Day · Challenge DaySilly Tasks Judging Panel
An educator plays the dramatic judge, awarding points for creativity, effort and teamwork as teams complete silly tasks across the day.
Superhero Day · Treasure Hunters Day · Escape Room Day +2Six Gem Challenge Quest
Six coloured gems are hidden around the service, each guarded by a mini challenge that teams must complete to collect it.
World Teachers' Day · Learn to Day · Teamwork Day +2Skill Swap Sports Stations
Children who are good at a sports skill run a station teaching it, from soccer dribbling to skipping tricks, and everyone rotates through as learners.
Challenge Day · Science Week · Science Day +3Spaghetti and Marshmallow Tower
Teams race the clock to build the tallest freestanding tower from dry spaghetti and marshmallows, testing engineering ideas.
After School Quick STEM · Science Week · Science Day +3Spaghetti and Tape Tower
Small teams build the tallest free-standing tower they can from dry spaghetti and tape, learning about triangles, bracing and teamwork.
Inventors Day · Challenge Day · Teamwork Day +3Spaghetti Marshmallow Tower
Teams build the tallest freestanding tower from dry spaghetti and tape that can hold a marshmallow on top.
One-Minute Challenge Day · Games Day · Great Race Day +1Spoon and Ball Balance
Children hold a spoon in their mouth and carry a ping pong ball across the room without dropping it.
Challenge Day · Science Week · At the Building Site +3Straw Bridge and Tower Challenge
Teams build the strongest bridge or tallest tower using only straws and tape, then test it to see how it holds up.
Brick Building Day · Challenge Day · At the Building Site +2Tallest Tower
Children build the tallest freestanding tower they can and measure the results.
Puzzle Day · Before School Calm Start · Challenge Day +1Tangram Challenges
Children arrange seven tangram pieces to make animals, people and shapes. A hands-on maths puzzle.
Brick Building Day · Teamwork Day · Block World Day +1Team Build Challenge
Teams build to a theme in a set time and present their creations.
Survival Challenge Day · Challenge Day · Teamwork Day +2Team Immunity Challenge
Older children compete in teams through puzzle and balance challenges to win a homemade immunity token.
Tennis Day · Challenge Day · Summer HolidaysTennis Rally Challenge
Pairs try to keep a rally going for as many hits as possible, counting together and trying to beat their own record.
Brick Building Day · Challenge Day · One-Minute Challenge Day +2Timed Brick Challenges
Children take on timed building challenges such as the tallest tower, a bridge or a vehicle that rolls furthest.
Great Race Day · Challenge Day · Teamwork Day +2Two-Choice Detour Challenges
At each stop of a team race, groups choose between two different mini challenges, weighing up speed, skill and strategy together.
Talent Show Day · One-Minute Challenge Day · Challenge Day +1Who Can Do It Longest?
Children try quick endurance challenges like bouncing a ball, skipping, whistling or jumping, mixed with speedy general-knowledge rounds, to see who can keep going longest.